Usually for Christmas I like to blog about what I really want like this R2-D2 peppermill

or these overpriced but awesome mushroom boxes

or bad ass artwork

but no one ever buys me anything off the internet so I thought I would do a gift guide of things I have (or want) and LOVE by and for vegans so you can add them to your list or buy them for people you like.

First, if you are looking to buy someone a cookbook my two favorites to come out this year are Appetite for Reduction and Viva Vegan

Appetite for Reduction just came out and though I have only had it a week we have had at least 10 recipes from it and it changed my life forever. Appetite has very simple, quick recipes that are really healthy, low calorie, but really hearty, tasty, and fabulous. It is the kind of recipes I am always looking for so now I don’t even have to keep blogging; they are all in there together. I am going to have to come up with a new hobby like skeet shooting or competitive ping pong. This book would be great for anyone, vegan or not, who is trying to eat healthier since it is full of easy recipes that use vegetables, whole grains and not a lot of vegan substitutes.

When I am not making healthy quick recipes I am usually cooking Mexican, or Central American, or even South American food. Now I don’t have to worry about creating recipes for that passion either because Viva Vegan has taken all the guess work out of veganizing Latin American dishes and put them in a handy wonderful book. I have learned a lot reading this one and I am so happy it exists. I learned to make Arepas because of this book and it has my most favorite seitan recipe I have ever tried. The whole book is really well designed and fun to read,well, if you like reading cookbooks so I think it would make a great gift.

Since veganmofo when I ate beans and rice for a month and now having all my meals from Appetite for Reduction, I have been really happy to have my little bento box because I can pack one layer full of rice or quinoa and the other layer filled with saucy beans. The exact one I have isn’t available anymore but this one from I Love Obento is just as adorable. The nice thing about bento boxes is that they are really tiny, you pack them completely full and you don’t have to worry about putting stuff in little baggies or finding tupperware lids. The whole thing can easily slip into my purse and it collapses to be super small when the meal is eaten.

There are so many talented vegan people out there. I love my vegan mug from Vegan Dish, who has really nice bowls in her etsy shop as well.

I also adore my prints from My Zoetrope, she has a calendar for 2011 where each of the super cute pictures for each month can be framed as 5X7 after the month is over.

Panda With Cookie has the cutest shop ever filled with monsters, tofu pirates, and “where’s my burrito” buttons. I really want to get the a couple of the onesies for my friend but she hasn’t even had her babies yet so I think it is jumping the gun.

If you are looking to stay warm I love my hat from Softspoken which is very comfortable and made of vegan yarn. The little bubbles do make people want to touch your head a lot so if that makes you nervous check out some of her other hats.

Another great way to stay warm is with long sleeve shirts and hoodies from Herbivore. They have a ton of fun stuff, my favorite being the “I’m vegan and I love you”

Nice bags can be really hard to find, I would love one of these messenger bags from Queen Bee Creations

I do have a bag that I really like from Sugar Lust (yet another Portland company). It has held up really well and it is waterproof they have all sorts of cute ones on etsy like this squid bag.

If you want to get a vegan a bottle of wine may I recommend checking out Barnivore first, it has a huge database of vegan friendly wines and beers. For a nice Christmas beer I recommend the delicious Jubelale, my favorite seasonal brew.

If you are looking for gourmet vegan cheese, candy, marshmallows, or anything else that is hard to find Food Fight is a great shop to check out. They even have vegan haggis.

If you are interested in fine local Texas products may I recommend Vegan Queso that is made right here in Austin.

and the famous Stubb’s BBQ sauce from downtown Austin.

Or Salsa from the Austin Spice Company, probably my favorite jarred salsa ever.

One of my favorite things to do during the holidays is to watch a lot of movies, so here are some favorite Christmas Movies

 

Finally, everyone one of the best presents you can give is a donation to a worthy organization that helps animals. Here in Texas Sunny Day Farms is always hoping for donations, along with emancipet and Austin Pet’s Alive